Rain in Philly sends ripples through Cubs starting rotation

SHARE Rain in Philly sends ripples through Cubs starting rotation

PHILADELPHIA – When Thursday’s rainout against the Phillies bumped Cubs ace Jake Arrieta to Friday, it had a ripple effect in the rotation that is expected to lead to a few more tweaks to realign Arrieta for an Oct. 7 wild-card date with the Pirates.

The immediate result: Arrieta (18-6) pitches the first game of Friday’s rain-caused doubleheader against the Phillies, at 4:05 p.m., with Kyle Hendricks taking his scheduled turn in the nightcap.

Because Arrieta moves off Tuesday’s doubleheader in Pittsburgh, to Wednesday, Jason Hammel is likely to be pushed back from Sunday’s scheduled start in Philadelphia, into Arrieta’s slot in the opener of the Pittsburgh doubleheader.

Manager Joe Maddon said the Cubs might consider Sunday’s start a “bullpen” day, just ahead of Monday’s scheduled off day.

“We had all kinds of stuff going on during the potential rainout,” Maddon said.

Looking toward the playoff picture, the Cubs have one remaining off day after Monday to use, if necessary to manipulate the rotation into the order they want heading into the postseason.

The Latest
Despite getting into foul trouble, which limited him to just six minutes in the second half, Shannon finished with 29 points, five rebounds and two assists.
Cowboy hats, bell-bottoms and boots were on full display Thursday night as fans lined up for the first of his three sold-out shows.
The incident occurred about 3:40 p.m. near Minooka. The horse was successfully placed back into the trailer, and the highway reopened about 40 minutes later. No injuries were reported.
The Hawks conceded the game’s only two goals within the first seven minutes and were shut out for the 12th time this season in a 2-0 defeat Thursday.